The Constitution, tall leaders and decades past Independence, the nation still looks at the Dalit population as its second-rung citizens
After India lost a hockey match in Tokyo Olympics and her family faced a casteist slur, Vandana tweeted: “I am Dalit. Because of the Buddha’s enlightenment, Ambedkar’s immortality, Kanshi Ram’s mettle, the essence of humaneness runs through me.”
You got to be a Dalit to know that there is no guarantee that you would not be targeted for your caste even if you excel. While the nation heartily celebrated the ‘Chak de’ moment for Indian women’s achievement, the neighbours of Vandana Kataria were busy castigating her. They abused and accused her for the defeat.
Don’t waste your time reiterating that our Constitution guarantees equality. We have the most advanced system of jurisprudence, thanks to Ambedkar and other luminaries of the Constituent Assembly. Its implementation is a different matter, though. The mindset hasn’t changed with the Constitution.
The National Crime Record Bureau data since 2016 shows that crimes against Dalits have increased 25 per cent. Atrocities and discrimination against them are rampant. It happens at all levels, under the very nose of the governments which are supposed to be the custodian of the Constitution. Dalits were turned away from a Government shelter when they took refuge from cyclone Fani in Eastern India.
It is still Manu Smriti being enacted, like it or not. Recently a horrific incident took place in the Capital when two daughters were raped in front of the hapless mother and made to drink pesticide. One girl died, the other battles for life. Not that it happens to only the Dalits but, let’s face it, Dalits are soft targets.
The police, the politics, the judiciary and the society are still heavily loaded against them. Getting justice is cumbersome even for those high on the social hierarchy. It is difficult for the poor and next to impossible for the poor Dalit. The NCRB data shows that the conviction rate in offenses under the SC/ST Atrocities Act was 32 per cent. The rate of pending cases was a whopping 94 per cent.
The Indian polity has not mitigated the caste system. It has politicised castes and vice versa. For their number, all political parties seek their vote but none their hearts. The Congress wooed them with a carrot but the condition of Dalits did not improve. Now the BJP is doing what wasn’t tried before — tame them with a stick. The quantum of Dalit atrocities is a shocker. There were around 46,000 crimes against SCs in 2019. While Uttar Pradesh had the highest number of such cases, Rajasthan had the highest rate of crimes against Dalits.
The story is the same almost everywhere. The home of a Dalit couple was attacked by a mob in Gujarat. A man had put up a Facebook post saying the Government does not permit the village temple for Dalit weddings. Equality in voting rights is yet to percolate to the social realm and reflect in parity.
The BJP has tried to play on symbolism — a post here, a sop there, a change of name somewhere. All this while instilling a sense of insecurity in them and creating a fear psychosis to mop them up. They have been pretty successful. The BJP won 46 of 84 reserved seats for the SCs in 2019. But this number did not make SCs secure by any chance.
There have been many triggers for Dalit atrocities, ranging from absurd to bizarre; a procession, a bridegroom riding a horse, or even a barking dog! The latest one is cow safety. Mohan Bhagwat’s contention that the RSS has nothing to do with lynch attacks, and contrarily it prevents them is far from the truth. Lynchings are not spontaneous. There has not been a single incident in which RSS members tried to prevent it. The vigilantes make no bones about being Hindu hardliners; rather they flaunt it. It is a badge they proudly wear. It is impossible to establish the RSS affiliation of cow vigilantes so it is difficult to nail the lie. Nathuram Godse was not a formal member of the RSS when he shot Mahatma Gandhi.
The 200 million Dalits constitute a strong political force. But that can happen when Dalits vote en bloc. Mayawati achieved this to become the CM. That marked the turning point. In Sanskrit, Dalit means lowest. Dalit have chosen this nomenclature over Mahatma Gandhi’s ‘Harijan’ to connote rebellion. Dalit politics has emboldened them. You may criticise Mayawati for her love for statues but a Dalit now has a leader who is larger than life. The big sandstone statues are a massive upgrade from the Ambedkar statues in Dalit colonies.
Before Mayawati, Ambedkar, Jagjivan Ram and Kanshi Ram set the stage for Dalit emancipation. They instilled a sense of dignity in Dalits. With that springs out will to fight and claim a rightful place in the society. Now the movement has reached a crossroads. Though the vote bank of Mayawati’s BSP in UP remains intact, her charisma is waning.
Even the vote bank may be gone sooner than later. In 2019, the BJP won 15 of the 17 reserved seats for the SCs. Corruption charges, quirky lifestyle and personality drawbacks could be her undoing. It has led Dalit voters to look elsewhere. Would it be the dynamic young Chandrashekhar Azad Ravan, or someone else? For that, we need to wait till the UP elections. Chandrshekahr’s Bhim Army may not be fighting it but would be playing the role of an ‘influencer’, in the new lingo, something aging Mayawati should be wary about!
(The writer is a columnist and documentary filmmaker. The views expressed are personal.)
